Moberly Career Center Prepares to Close

MOBERLY - The Moberly City Council held a public meeting Friday morning with state officials to discuss a tough topic in Moberly, the closure of the Moberly Career Center.

Cynthia Higgins, director at the Moberly Career Center, said the center received a letter in March stating that the center is set to close on April 30.

The executive director at the Moberly Chamber of Commerce said they made the closure the topic of the meeting because even though the information was made public a few weeks ago, many residents were still not informed. She said it will be another difficult hit to the area since last year the state closed the Moberly Social Security Department.

Higgins and Miller both said one of the biggest problems with closing the career center is that the people using the center do not have enough money to pay for gas to drive to a career center far away. Higgins said many of the people that frequently use the center have to report in person every four weeks for unemployment.

Miller said the budget cuts stems from the national sequester cuts, which trickle down through the state's money.

"We understand that there are some tough budget cuts going on right now. We're not going to go down without a fight. They are trying to keep these services from our rural communities. But this is something that we strongly believe in, because they deserve it."